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All Japan Tokyo Chirori the Therapy Dog
AO Edited

Chirori the Therapy Dog

A touching statue dedicated to Japan's first therapy dog.

Tokyo, Japan

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Fred Cherrygarden
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Chirori the Therapy Dog.   Fred Cherrygarden / Atlas Obscura User
Puppies.   Fred Cherrygarden / Atlas Obscura User
Chirori with her five puppies.   Fred Cherrygarden / Atlas Obscura User
Information.   Fred Cherrygarden / Atlas Obscura User
Chirori.   Fred Cherrygarden / Atlas Obscura User
One of the puppies.   Fred Cherrygarden / Atlas Obscura User
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The title of Japan's most famous dog undisputedly goes to Hachikō, whose incredible story has been passed on for generations through books and films, even getting a Hollywood adaptation. Compared to him, Chirori the Therapy Dog is more than a bit obscure, even to the general Japanese public, but pay Tsukijigawa-Ginza Park a visit and visitors will find a lifelike sculpture dedicated to the dog.

A mixed-breed dog born circa 1992, Chirori was found at a garbage dump in Matsudo with a disability in her hind leg and five puppies all abandoned by her abusive owner. She was nearly put down then, but at the suggestion of blues singer Toru Oki, she was given a chance to be a therapy dog, unprecedented in Japan at that time.

Chirori proved to be very hardworking and was certified by the International Therapy Dog Association after only six months' training, when it would require an average dog about two and a half years. Thus, she became Japan's very first therapy dog, helping many people and paving the way for a new form of welfare.

When she passed away from mammary cancer in 2006, dog lovers and welfare workers alike worked together to donate a bronze sculpture of Chirori and her puppies to the park, unveiling it about a year later.

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Dogs History & Culture Sculpture Gardens

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Tsukijigawa-Ginza Park can be found on one side of Mannen Bridge, across the street from the Togeki theater.

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Added By

Fred Cherrygarden

Published

October 6, 2022

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Chirori the Therapy Dog
Chuo City
Tokyo, 104-0045
Japan
35.668543, 139.768771
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Tsukiji Hongan-ji Temple

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Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Tokyo

Tokyo

Japan

Places 220
Stories 13

Nearby Places

Tsukiji Hongan-ji Temple

Tokyo, Japan

miles away

Public Utility Conduits of Ginza

Tokyo, Japan

miles away

'Coicorin'

Tokyo, Japan

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Tokyo

Tokyo

Japan

Places 220
Stories 13

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